The Butte County Sheriff's Office is seeking information in a series of bee hive thefts that have cost beekeepers thousands of dollars in losses during the worst possible time — almond pollination.

The first hive theft happened in November 2013 in Gridley, according to the Sheriff's Office. In late January, another theft of bee hives was reported from the Afton Road and Cherokee Canal levee area in west Butte County. A third theft occurred in February in Nord.

Pat Heitkam, owner of Heitkams' Honey Bees in the Capay district of Orland, had 32 hives stolen — a $10,000 loss to his business — out of an orchard in Nord about three days ago, he said. His employees placed the hives in the orchard for pollination services and when they returned to check on the hives, the bees were gone. The only thing left was the pallet the hives had been placed on.

In the last three months, there have been three cases reported in Butte County, but hive thefts have also occurred in neighboring counties, said Jay Freeman, a detective with the Butte County Sheriff's Office.

There's been a substantial amount taken in each case, ranging from 30 to 130 hives, he said. The combined number of hives stolen in Butte County is about 200.

Heitkams has been in the beekeeping business for about 30 years, and said that before this year, it had never happened to him.

"It's becoming a problem," he said.

He called the Sheriff's Office about the theft of his hives and reportedly learned there was a theft in Gridley of about 100 hives; in Orland about 18 hives were stolen, and another beekeeper lost 48 hives, he said.

The Sheriff's Office believes this is a sophisticated operation and that the same group of people may be responsible for all the thefts in recent months.

"They definitely know how to handle bees," Freeman said.

Heitkam and Ed Ryon, owner of Ryon Apiaries in Durham, have heard the same possibility being brought up by fellow beekeepers.

It has to be someone who knows about bees and what they're doing, Ryon said.

His apiary was one of the places hit by the thieves. He lost 40 hives about two weeks ago. In his case, the alleged thieves took the hives and the pallets.

There's been a lot of speculation about it possibly being people struggling to keep their bees alive, Heitkam said.

Either way, the men say that right now is the worst possible time for the thefts to happen.

This is the time of year when the bees are the most valuable because there's so much demand for pollination, Heitkam said. It's the time when beekeepers have the most money invested in the bees.

It's difficult to replace the bees right now, Ryon said.

Ryon had to buy a big load of bees from Texas so he could make his pollination contract this year. He said it's about $200 to replace each hive.

Bee hive thefts haven't really been an issue in the area until recently, with the last week or so really escalating, Ryon said.

Thefts happened a few years ago, but not to this extent, Freeman said.

The Sheriff's Office has contacted the Glenn and Tehama sheriff's offices, as well as the Farm Bureau and several media outlets to alert people about the issue.

Freeman encourages farmers and beekeepers to keep close communication on activity and to track anyone who is seen removing or is near bee hives, and if possible to write down a license plate for vehicles and take photos.

Because some of the thefts occurred in orchards that were being pollinated, it's important to check with the owner of the bees, Freeman said. The suspects may look like they are beekeepers.

Most of the thefts are thought to have occurred once it's dark out, so if anyone witnesses suspicious activity around bee hives, they are asked to call the authorities.

Several people in the agriculture industry are in talks about hiring a security company to monitor properties at night to discourage people from stealing, Heitkam said. There's also the possibility of placing tracking devices on bee hives.

For now, Heitkam and Ryon ask that farmers and the general public help them avoid more thefts.

"The growers are depending upon those bees to pollinate for them," Heitkam said. "The farmers lose out and we lose out."

Ryon encourages people contracting with beekeepers to be aware of who they're renting from.

Anyone with information regarding the thefts is asked to call detective Freeman at 538-7671.